Hello,

I was wondering if anyone had a better defintion for 匾額 http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%8C%BE%E9%A1%8D rather than "a horizontal inscribed board", without some cultural background, it is very hard to imagine what that really is.

Someone asked me how to say it in English, and though I knew what she was talking about, I couldn't remember the definition which is quite a mouthful. @_@

inscribed nameplate over door, signboard of a hall, a horizontal engraved plaque

传统的匾额被称作“古建筑的灵魂”，是最能体现中国古代建筑文化和建筑特色的一种装饰构件，它集标名、装饰、建筑、文化等多重意义于一身，是具有中国民族气派和东方特色的艺术奇葩。(...)

http://home.hsw.cn/system/2011/12/06/051177298.shtml

大哥，你好。久违了。很高兴又一次得到你的指导。不胜荣幸 。
当然匾额集标名、装饰、建筑、文化等多重意义于一身。但是西方的plaque 又何尝没有标名、装饰、建筑、文化的意义呢？东西方在文化，艺术，技术上的发展历史都不同。所以匾额跟plaque 在体现上迥然不同。但说到底，匾额还不是一块挂在墙上刻了字的牌吗，在意义上跟 plague 真的有不同？